Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute is moving ahead with a new community childcare center after receiving a $5 million award from the New York State Office of Children and Family Services for the RPI childcare center.

The Troy project is expected to create 116 full-time childcare spaces for children under age 5, along with backup care and vacation programming for 20 school-age children.

This initiative will not only support RPI students but also promote the RPI childcare center as a key resource for local families.

RPI says the center will be located on Detroit Avenue near the East Campus Athletic Village and operated by Bright Horizons. Enrollment will give priority to RPI students, faculty and staff, while remaining open to families across the Capital Region.

New funding moves project forward

The $5 million state award is the latest public investment in the project. RPI said planning began after the university received $2.5 million from Empire State Development and $900,000 from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority in 2024.

RPI President Martin A. Schmidt said the project shows what can happen when institutions work together to address community needs.

“This project represents what can be accomplished when institutions come together to address important community needs,” Schmidt said in RPI’s announcement.

He thanked Gov. Kathy Hochul, OCFS, Empire State Development and NYSERDA for supporting the plan.

Who the center will serve

The center is designed to serve both the university and the surrounding community. RPI says it will include:

• 116 full-time childcare spaces for children younger than 5;
• backup care and vacation programming for 20 school-age children;
• priority enrollment for RPI students, faculty and staff;
• remaining availability for families from the wider Capital Region.

That mixed model could make the project important beyond the campus. Childcare access is often tied directly to a family’s ability to work, attend school or complete job training. For universities, reliable childcare can also affect recruitment and retention of students and employees who have young children.

Bright Horizons will operate the center

Bright Horizons, which operates employer-sponsored childcare programs in the United States and other countries, will manage the center. RPI said the program will use age-appropriate early education that includes science, technology, engineering and math activities, creative arts, language development, social-emotional learning and play.

The university said it is now working with Bright Horizons on construction and operating plans. The current target is to welcome families in late 2027.

RPI said future updates will include construction milestones, enrollment details, tuition information and opportunities for campus and community members to ask questions.

Why the project matters

The announcement comes as colleges, employers and local governments across New York continue looking for ways to expand childcare capacity. A childcare shortage can affect far more than parents with young children. It can reduce workforce participation, increase absenteeism and make it harder for students with children to remain enrolled.

For RPI, the center also represents a direct campus investment in family support. The planned location next to the East Campus Athletic Village places the service within the university’s existing footprint while keeping it accessible to community families.

The project is still in development, and several details — including tuition rates and final enrollment procedures — have not yet been announced. Those details will determine how accessible the center is for families outside the university as well as those connected to RPI.

What happens next

Construction and operational planning will continue through 2026 and 2027. RPI says it expects to release more information during the fall semester and as the project reaches additional milestones.

For Capital Region families, the most important figures are already clear: the project would add more than 100 full-time early-childhood slots and additional care for school-age children. If the late-2027 opening schedule holds, those spaces could become available within roughly a year.

Sources: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and NEWS10 ABC, Sept. 30, 2026.